News of religious/ethical change, conflict and/or intolerance

2008-August

Events:

2008-AUG-01: USA: Paranormal powers to be evaluated: Colin A
Ross, MD, a psychiatrist from Dallas TX, claims that he has a superpower. He
believes that he can send a beam of energy from his eyes that will generate a
tone in an audio system. 1 He has applied to win a
the James Randi Educational Foundation prize of $1 million for anyone who
can prove a paranormal power. The first step is for Dr. Ross and the Foundation
personnel to jointly develop a test protocol to prove or disprove his ability.

The Wall Street Journal states:

"Dr. Ross, founder of the Colin A. Ross Institute, is the author of over
135 scientific papers and 18 books, many of them dealing with
psychological trauma and multiple personality
disorder. He has spoken to mental health professionals throughout
North America, as well as in Europe, China, Australia and New Zealand,
including several conference presentations on energy fields. In a
forthcoming book entitled Human Energy Fields, Dr. Ross explains a new
science and medicine of human energy fields in detail."

" 'Once this energy is identified and captured, as I have done, then it
can be studied and used for many applications in medicine and other
fields, said Dr. Ross."

"Dr. Ross plans to use the $1 Million to develop scanning equipment for
medical use and to carry out research on therapeutic uses of human
energy fields." 2

There have been many attempts in the past, ranging from therapeutic touch
practitioner who vlsimrf that they can feel bodily energy, to a European who
claimed that he could see objects even though blindfolded.

2008-AUG-03: India: 145 people died during stampede in Indian Hindu temple:
Thousands of pilgrims stampeded at the Naina Devi temple in northern India after
rumors of a landslide that never happened. They had gone their to celebrate
Shravan Navratas, a nine-day festival that honors the Hindu Goddess Shakrti, the
divine mother. Pilgrims descending the mountain path collided with others
ascending. 145 died after being trampled to death or being pushed over the side
of the mountain. Another 37 were injured. 3

2008-AUG-08: Kashmir: Inter-religious conflict over shelter for
religious pilgrims: Hundredsof thousands of Hindu
pilgrims travel each year to the Amarnath Shrine -- a cave that contains a
large icicle in the form of a penis that is revered by Hindus as an
incarnation of Lord Shiva -- the Hindu God of destruction and regeneration.
The Kashmiri government had planned to transfer control of about 100 acres
of land to the shrine so that shelters and bathrooms could be constructed
for temporary use by the pilgrims. But some Muslims were concerned that the
arrangement might be a plan to establish a Hindu settlement in the region
and change the delicate demographic balance between Hindus and Muslims in
Kashmir. Riots since JUN-23 have claimed 12 deaths. 4

2008-AUG-09: Malaysia: Protestors successfully halt legal
conference: The police ordered the Bar Council, a professional
legal association, to terminate its conference on religious conversion. More
than 300 demonstrators had gathered outside the association's headquarters,
and there was a significant chance that violence might break out. The
conference had included legal experts from a variety of religions including
Islam. Their goal was to discuss how to resolve family problems brought
about by religious conversions. For example, a prominent case during 2007
involved a previously Hindu family in which the husband converted to Islam,
and the wife remained Hindu. She asked the court to stop her husband from
changing their child's religion to Islam.

The Associated Press
reported that some Muslims are concerned about religious minorities --
primarily Buddhists, Christians and Hindus -- seeking religious equality in
this predominately Muslim country. Protestors held signs stating: "Don't
challenge Islam" and "Crush the Bar Council." Muslim activist
Azmi Abdul Hamid wrote in a statement: "The issue of Islamic affairs is a
very sensitive issue for Muslims. We remind the Bar Council not to play with
fire." 5

2008-AUG-13: IL: Catholic clergy abuse settlement: The
Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago agreed to pay more than $12.6 million to 16
persons who accused priests of sexual abuse. Cardinal Francis George
apologized for the abuse and said in a statement:

"My hope is that these settlements will help the survivors and their
families begin to heal and move forward. ... We must continue to do
everything in our power to ensure the safety of the children in our
care."

In an unprecedented attempt at openness, the archdiocese is making
George's deposition public.

This brings the total payments to $65 million to settle about 250 claims
in the Archdiocese over the past three decades. Mediation continues in about
two dozen other cases. 6 More information on clergy abuse settlements.

2008-AUG-20: Mexico: Priest condemns women in miniskirts:
As part of the preparation for a forum on family values in Mexico City
during 2009, the Reverend Sergio Roman criticized women in miniskirts. He
wrote on an official church website: "When we show our body without
prudence, without modesty, we are prostituting ourselves,"

Women's
groups in Mexico accused the church of providing a cover for sexual violence
and abuse. Guadalupe Loaeza, a well-known social commentator, said:

"It gives rapists permission to say, 'Well she had on a miniskirt'. What the
church says has credibility - that's why this type of statement is so
dangerous."

Fr. Roman's archdiocese defended him, saying that his words were
taken out of context and misinterpreted. It said the article was only
intended to give "moral guidance for the Catholic community." 7

2008-AUG-21: USA: Petition to call on Sen. McCain to renounce
torture: In 2005, Senator McCain -- himself a victim of torture --
was one of the leaders in the struggle against torture. He sponsored a bill
to ban U.S. military personnel from using torture as an interrogation
method. By 2008, he had abandoned this position and voted against the very
same torture ban.

2008-AUG-28: USA: Chick Publications publishes new religious tract:
Chick Publications is selling a new tract titled "First Bite." It
equates three unrelated groups: blood-drinking
vampires with Wiccans and
religious Satanists. It describes an encounter
between Igor, the leader of the local "coven" of vampires, and Faith -- an
Evangelical Christian. Igor tries to bite Faith on her neck with his sharp
fangs. Faith gets him to trust Jesus as Lord and Savior. The coven never
recovered. We expect that, because of the numerous untruths expressed in the
"First Bite," the individual who circulates the track -- and by extension
conservative Protestants generally -- will tend to be associated with
religious hatred, intolerance, and disinformation. The tracts may well prove
to be counterproductive. 8

2008-AUG-31" Iceland: Hindu leader refused permission to deliver
prayer: Rajan Zed's request to deliver an opening prayer at the
start of the next session of the Iceland Parliament was rejected. Deputy
Secretary General of Althingi (Icelandic Parliament) Thorsteinn Magnússon
wrote: "There is a long tradition for conducting a Lutheran mass at the
opening of the parliament and there are no plans to change this tradition."
Apparently, there is no process by which this can be changed. 9

References used:

The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above
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